1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire

SAN FRANCISCO - MARCH 25: (Bottom Photo) A view of the San Francisco Ferry Building and Marketplace as seen from the Embarcadero Center between Clay and Sacramento Streets March 28, 2006 in San Francisco. The Ferry Building thrives today as marketplace featuring fine foods and a weekly farmer's market in addition to Ferry service from Marin and Alameda counties. April 18 will mark the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Top Photo) View of the Union Ferry Building and clocktower seen through destruction and rubble from Drumm Street between Clay and Sacramento after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and subsequent fires, San Francisco, California, 1906. The Union Ferry Building opened in 1898 and was the central destination for anyone arriving by train from the East, as well as residents from Oakland and Marin who worked in the city and arrived by ferry. The steel framed structure designed by A. Page Brown survived both the 1906 and 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. (Photo by Pictorial Parade/Getty Images)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Market Street at Kearny. On the right is the old Chronicle Building at 642 Market. The ten-story building suffered a major collapse of the western section of the structure. The building, as well as its newer 17-story annex, still survived, though the exteriors have been covered. Lotta's Fountain is in front of the building. (sfmuseum.org)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Destruction in the area of North Beach and Chinatown. The Sentinel Building under construction at Kearny and Columbus at the time of the quake still stands today. View is south along what is now Columbus Avenue toward the current site of the Transamerica Pyramid. (sfmuseum.org)

The1906 San Francisco Earthquake: Then And Now

SAN FRANCISCO - MARCH 25: (Bottom Photo) A view of the United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals building looking down Mission Street from Seventh Street April 7, 2006 in San Francisco. The Court of Appeals building was formely the main post office. April 18 will mark the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Top Photo) View of a damaged section of Mission Street near Seventh in fornt of the main post office after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and subsequent fires, San Francisco, California, 1906. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Horses killed by falling bricks in the fish wholesalers' district along Sacramento above Montgomery Street. (sfmuseum.org)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Quake refugees at Twin Peaks view a destroyed city in flames. (AP Photo/San Francisco Museum of Modern Art)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake: Then And Now

SAN FRANCISCO - MARCH 23: (Bottom Photo) A vintage rail car passes by on Market Street at Mason Street March 23, 2006 in San Francisco. April 18 will mark the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Top Photo) Survivors of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake walk along Market Street at Mason Street past debris and crumbling facades of buildings caused by citywide fires, San Francisco, California, 1906. To the far left in the distance is the destroyed Fairmont Hotel. (Photo by Pictorial Parade/Getty Images)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

The Valencia Street Hotel sits in the middle of the street as crowds gather, likely for a rescue effort. The four-floor building collapsed and sank during soil liquefaction. It is believed that nearly 100 people died in the rubble. (sfmuseum.org)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Wreckage of First Congregational Church on Mason Street between Post and Geary. The large building to the rear is the back of the St. Francis Hotel which fronts on Powell Street. A new church structure was built on the site. (sfmuseum.org)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake: Then And Now

SAN FRANCISCO - MARCH 23: (Bottom Photo) A view looking down California Street at Powell from the Fairmont Hotel March 23, 2006 in San Francisco. The Ritz Carlton hotel stands at the former site of Grace Church. April 18 will mark the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Top Photo) View of the destruction and rubble looking east down California Street from Powell after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and subsequent fires, May 19, 1906 in San Francisco, California. At right the Grace Church was destroyed during the quake and relocated to California Street and Taylor after the affluent Crocker Family donated their destroyed Nob Hill property for a diocesan cathedral. Construction began on the current Grace Cathedral in 1928 and was completed in 1964 as the third largest Episcopal cathedral in the nation. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

SAN FRANCISCO - MARCH 25: (Left Photo) A man photographs the ruins of a building block in front of the remains of City Hall near Market and Seventh Streets after the Great Earthquake in San Francisco, California. The city hall which took 27 years to build at an estimated cost of $6 million, crumbled in less than 30 seconds during the quake. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) (Right Photo) A view of the new San Francisco City Hall from Market Street near Seventh Street March 25, 2006 in San Francisco. The current city hall was designed by Arthur Brown of the firm Bakewell and was completed in December of 1915 a built a block away from where its predecessor stood. Brown's design references the dome of the Church of Les Invalides in Paris. During the 1989 quake, the dome twisted on its steel frame, moving two inches and the walls and concrete floor slabs suffer cracks. The building undewent a full restoration and reopened in 1999. April 18 will mark the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Police patrol for looters along Market Street. The Call Building, shown in the background was modernized in the 1930s, and is today known as Central Towers. (AP Photo/Bancroft Library)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Destruction around Union Square. The tall steel skeleton left of center is the Whittell Building - then known as the Union League Building. It was under construction at the time of the earthquake, later finished, and still standing on Geary Street. The Butler Building at right, also under construction at the time of the quake, had walls peel away during the quake, killing several people. The building later became I. Magnin's, and its windows shattered during the 1989 earthquake. Several people on the street were injured by falling glass. The Butler Building is now part of Macy's. (sfmuseum.org)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake: Then And Now

SAN FRANCISCO - MARCH 25: (Bottom Photo) A view of Valencia Street from 19th Street looking towards 18th Street March 25, 2006 in San Francisco. An auto repair shop (red brick building) is seen at the site of the former Valencia Street Hotel. April 18 will mark the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Top Photo) A view of Valencia Street from 19th Street looking towards 18th Street in San Francisco, 1906. At left is the Valencia Street Hotel, once a four story building that collapsed, sinking the first three floors and trapping over 200 people, many of which drowned by flooding when 2 water mains broke on Valencia Street. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Army refugee camp in Jefferson Square in the Western Addition as seen from at Golden Gate Ave. and Octavia. (sfmuseum.org)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake: Then And Now

SAN FRANCISCO - MARCH 25: (Right Photo) A view of the Central Tower Building from O'Farrell Street looking towards 3rd Street March 25, 2006 in San Francisco. The Central Tower Building is located at the site of the former Call Building and was remodled and renamed in 1938. April 18 will mark the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Left Photo) View of the destruction and rubble along Market Street at Third Street after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and subsequent fires, San Francisco, California, 1906. The Call building is seen at right and suffered extreme destruction from the disaster. Just to the left of the Call Building is the Hearst Building. (Photo by Frederic Lewis/Getty Images)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

Ruins after the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire. Three surviving structures in the Financial District are: at far left, the Kohl Building, in the center the Mills Building, both on Montgomery St., and at right the Merchants' Exchange Building on California Street. (sfmuseum.org)

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

People along Sacramento Street watch the city in flames. (Arnold Genthe)